MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

1997 Regular Session

To: Fees and Salaries of Public Officers; Appropriations

By: Representatives Green (96th), Bozeman

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 25-3-31, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO INCREASE THE SALARIES OF THE ELECTED STATE AND DISTRICT OFFICIALS; TO AMEND SECTION 25-3-33, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO INCREASE THE SALARIES OF CERTAIN APPOINTED STATE AND DISTRICT OFFICIALS; TO AMEND SECTIONS 5-1-41 AND 5-1-43, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO INCREASE THE COMPENSATION AND EXPENSE ALLOWANCE FOR LEGISLATORS AND THE COMPENSATION OF THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR AND SPEAKER; TO CREATE A NEW SECTION TO BE CODIFIED AS SECTION 5-1-46, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO ESTABLISH A SALARY FOR THE HOUSE SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE; TO AMEND SECTIONS 25-3-3, 25-3-5, 25-3-13, 25-3-25, 25-3-36 AND 41-61-59, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO INCREASE THE SALARIES AUTHORIZED FOR CERTAIN ELECTED COUNTY OFFICIALS; TO REPEAL SECTION 41-61-60, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH REQUIRES THE PAYMENT OF AN ADDITIONAL AMOUNT TO THE COUNTY MEDICAL EXAMINERS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 25-3-31, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

25-3-31. The annual salaries of the following elected state and district officers are * * * fixed as follows:

Governor $83,160.00

Attorney General 82,080.00

Secretary of State 72,080.00

Commissioner of Insurance 66,280.00

State Treasurer 66,280.00

State Auditor of Public Accounts 66,280.00

Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce 66,280.00

Transportation Commissioners 60,000.00

Public Service Commissioners 60,000.00

The above fixed salary of the Governor shall be the reference amount utilized in computing average compensation and earned compensation pursuant to Section 25-11-103(e) and * * * (i) and to related sections which require such computations.

SECTION 2. Section 25-3-33, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

25-3-33. The annual salaries of the following appointive state and district officials and employees are * * * fixed as follows:

Deputy Attorney General, not to exceed 72,800.00

Assistant Attorneys General shall each receive

annual salaries in an amount to be

fixed by the Attorney General but

not to exceed 68,400.00

Military Department - National Guard:

Adjutant General 60,000.00

Department of Banking and Consumer Finance:

Commissioner 70,000.00

Chairman of the State Tax Commission

(Commissioner of Revenue) 75,000.00

Associate Commissioners, each 42,000.00

Director of Emergency Management Agency 50,000.00

Highway Safety Patrol:

Commissioner of Public Safety 65,000.00

Chief of Highway Patrol 55,000.00

Department of Human Services:

Director, not to exceed 80,000.00

Workers' Compensation Commission:

Members, each 64,000.00

Executive Director 62,000.00

Administrative Judge, each 62,000.00

Archives and History:

Director, not to exceed 65,000.00

State Forester 62,006.00

State Oil and Gas Board:

Secretary-Supervisor 63,448.00

Educational Television Authority:

Executive Director 59,740.00

Director, Mississippi Library Commission,

not to exceed 59,740.00

Executive Secretary, Public

Service Commission 44,908.00

Parole Board:

Chairman 50,000.00

Administrative Assistant for Parole Matters 42,000.00

Members, each 44,000.00

Governor's Office-Federal State Programs:

Coordinator Federal State Programs 57,103.00

Governor's State Bond Advisory Division:

Director 47,586.00

Employment Security Commission:

Executive Director, not to exceed 63,448.00

Executive Director, Department of Mental Health,

to be determined by the State Board of

Mental Health, not to exceed 80,000.00

Director, Division of Medicaid,

not to exceed 75,000.00

Director, State Department of Transportation,

not to exceed 83,000.00

State Entomologist 54,384.00

Clerk of the Supreme Court 48,616.00

State Aid Engineer, Division of

State Aid Road Construction 65,000.00

Executive Director, Judicial Performance

Commission 62,000.00

Executive Director, Department of Finance

and Administration 80,000.00

Superintendent, Mississippi School for

the Blind, to be determined by the State Board of

Education, not to exceed 65,000.00

Superintendent, Mississippi School for

the Deaf, to be determined by the State Board of

Education, not to exceed 65,000.00

Executive Director, State Fair Commission 55,000.00

Executive Director, Department of Wildlife,

Fisheries and Parks 73,135.00

Executive Director, Department of

Environmental Quality 78,000.00

Executive Director, Pat Harrison

Waterway District 55,325.00

Executive Director, Pearl River Basin

Development District 53,254.00

Executive Director, Pearl River Valley

Water Supply District 62,661.00

Executive Director, Tombigbee River Valley

Water Management District 53,774.00

Director, Soil and Water Conservation

Commission 41,684.00

Commissioner, Mississippi Department of

Corrections 75,000.00

Executive Director, State Central Data

Processing Authority 79,613.00

Executive Director, Mississippi Industries

for the Blind 54,702.00

Director, Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics 55,000.00

Executive Secretary, State Veterans

Affairs Board 50,000.00

Executive Officer, Veterans' Home

Purchase Board 52,970.00

Chief Administrative Officer,

Motor Vehicle Commission 53,744.00

Stadium Manager, Mississippi Veterans

Memorial Stadium 50,000.00

Executive Director, Mississippi Arts Commission 50,000.00

Executive Director, Mississippi Department of

Rehabilitation Services 70,000.00

SECTION 3. Section 5-1-41, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

5-1-41. Beginning with the 1986 Regular Session of the Legislature of the State of Mississippi, each Senator and Representative of the Legislature shall receive as compensation at each regular session the sum of Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) and the mileage allowance provided by Section 25-3-41, for each mile of the distance by the most direct route usually traveled in coming to and returning from the place where the Legislature sits. Beginning on the effective date of Section 3, House Bill No. 1032, 1997 Regular Session, each Senator and Representative shall receive for attending each extraordinary session or called session the sum of Sixty-five Dollars ($65.00) per day and mileage at the same rate as per regular session. In addition to the above, beginning with the first calendar month after the effective date of Section 3, House Bill No. 1032, 1997 Regular Session, each Senator and Representative shall receive the sum of One Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($1,500.00) per month for expenses incidental to his office for every full month of his term, except any month or major fraction thereof when the Legislature is convened in regular or extraordinary session; and payments shall be made to each Senator and Representative by the State Treasurer between the first and tenth day of each month following the month for which the payments are due. However, each Senator and Representative who votes in the negative on House Bill No. 1032, 1997 Regular Session, may not receive the increase in the salary and expense allowance established under this section as provided for in House Bill No. 1032, 1997 Regular Session, unless the Senator or Representative signs and files the following statement with the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the House of Representatives: "I was for the legislative pay raise but did not have the guts to vote for it."

5-1-41. Beginning with the 2000 Regular Session of the Legislature of the State of Mississippi, each Senator and Representative of the Legislature shall receive as compensation at each regular session the sum of Fifteen Thousand Dollars ($15,000.00) and the mileage allowance provided by Section 25-3-41, for each mile of the distance by the most direct route usually traveled in coming to and returning from the place where the Legislature sits; and shall receive for attending each extraordinary session or called session the sum of Sixty-five Dollars ($65.00) per day and mileage at the same rate as per regular session. In addition to the above, each Senator and Representative shall receive the sum of One Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($1,500.00) per month for expenses incidental to his office for every full month of his term, except any month or major fraction thereof when the Legislature is convened in regular or extraordinary session; and payments shall be made to each Senator and Representative by the State Treasurer between the first and tenth day of each month following the month for which the payments are due. However, each Senator and Representative who votes in the negative on House Bill No. 1032, 1997 Regular Session, may not receive the increase in the salary and expense allowance established under this section as provided for in House Bill No. 1032, 1997 Regular Session, unless the Senator or Representative signs and files the following statement with the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the House of Representatives: "I was for the legislative pay raise but did not have the guts to vote for it."

SECTION 4. Section 5-1-43, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

5-1-43. (1) The salary of the Lieutenant Governor and of the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall be Forty Thousand Eight Hundred Dollars ($40,800.00) annually, and they shall receive for attending each extraordinary or called session the same compensation and mileage as is provided for members of the Legislature.

(2) Commencing on June 1, 1980, and on the first day of each month thereafter, the Lieutenant Governor and the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall receive in twelve (12) equal monthly installments the compensation provided for pursuant to subsection (1) of this section.

5-1-43. (1) The salary of the Lieutenant Governor and of the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall be Sixty Thousand Dollars ($60,000.00) annually, and they shall receive for attending each extraordinary or called session the same compensation and mileage as is provided for members of the Legislature. The salary provided for the Speaker of the House of Representatives under this subsection shall be in addition to the compensation and expense allowance established for members of the Legislature under Section 5-1-41.

(2)  * * * On the first day of each month * * *, the Lieutenant Governor and the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall receive in twelve (12) equal monthly installments the compensation provided for pursuant to subsection (1) of this section.

SECTION 5. The following shall be codified as Section 5-1-46, Mississippi Code of 1972:

5-1-46. Beginning on January 1, 2000, the Speaker Pro Tempore of the House of Representatives shall receive an annual salary in an amount equal to fifty percent (50%) of the salary of the Speaker of the House of Representatives. The salary provided for the Speaker Pro Tempore under this section shall be in addition to the compensation and expense allowance established for members of the Legislature under Section 5-1-41.

SECTION 6. Section 25-3-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

25-3-3. The term "total assessed valuation" as used in this section only refers to the ad valorem assessment for the county and, in addition, in counties where oil is produced, the actual value of oil at the point of production, as certified to the counties by the State Tax Commission under the provisions of Sections 27-25-501 through 27-25-525.

The salary of assessors of the various counties is * * * fixed as full compensation for their services as county assessors and tax collectors. The annual salary of each assessor shall be based upon the total assessed valuation of his respective county for the preceding taxable year in the following categories and for the following amounts:

(a) For counties with a total assessed valuation of Two Hundred Fifty Million Dollars ($250,000,000.00) or more, a salary of Forty-three Thousand One Hundred Sixty-four Dollars ($43,164.00);

(b) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least Seventy-five Million Dollars ($75,000,000.00) but less than Two Hundred Fifty Million Dollars ($250,000,000.00), a salary of Forty-one Thousand Six Hundred Twenty-four Dollars ($41,624.00).

(c) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least Thirty-five Million Dollars ($35,000,000.00) but less than Seventy-five Million Dollars ($75,000,000.00), a salary of Thirty-eight Thousand Seven Hundred Sixty-eight Dollars ($38,768.00);

(d) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least Twenty Million Dollars ($20,000,000.00) but less than Thirty-five Million Dollars ($35,000,000.00), a salary of Thirty-five Thousand Eight Hundred Sixty-four Dollars ($35,864.00);

(e) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least Twelve Million Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($12,500,000.00) but less than Twenty Million Dollars ($20,000,000.00), a salary of Thirty-two Thousand Nine Hundred Sixty Dollars ($32,960.00);

(f) For counties having a total assessed valuation of less than Twelve Million Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($12,500,000.00), a salary of Thirty Thousand Fifty-six Dollars ($30,056.00).

The annual salary established for the assessor-tax collector shall not be reduced as a result of a reduction in total assessed valuation. The salaries may be increased as a result of an increase in total assessed valuation.

In addition to all other compensation paid to assessor-tax collectors in counties having two (2) judicial districts, the board of supervisors shall allow the assessor-tax collector to be paid an additional Three Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($3,500.00) per year. In addition to all other compensation paid to assessors or tax collectors, in counties maintaining two (2) full-time offices, the board of supervisors may allow the assessor or tax collector be paid an additional Three Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($3,500.00) per year.

In addition to all other compensation paid to assessor-tax collectors, the board of supervisors of a county shall allow for such assessor-tax collector to be paid additional compensation when there is a contract between the county and one or more municipalities providing that the assessor-tax collector shall assess and/or collect taxes for the municipality or municipalities; and such assessor-tax collector shall be authorized to receive such additional compensation from the county and/or the municipality or municipalities in any amount allowed by the county and the municipality or municipalities for performing those services.

When any tax assessor holds a valid certificate of educational recognition from the International Association of Assessing Officers or is a licensed appraiser under Sections 73-34-1 et seq., he shall receive an additional One Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($1,500.00) annually beginning the next fiscal year after completion. When any tax assessor is a licensed state certified Residential Appraiser (RA) or licensed state certified Timberland Appraiser (TA) under Sections 73-34-1 et seq., or when any tax assessor holds a valid designation from the International Association of Assessing Officers as a Cadastral Mapping Specialist (CMS) or Personal Property Specialist (PPS) or Residential Evaluation Specialist (RES), he shall receive an additional Six Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($6,500.00) annually beginning the next fiscal year after completion. When any tax assessor holds the valid designation of Certified Assessment Evaluator (CAE) from the International Association of Assessing Officers or is a state certified General Real Estate Appraiser (GA) under Sections 73-34-1 et seq., he shall receive an additional Eight Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($8,500.00) annually beginning the next fiscal year after completion.

The salaries * * * set out in this section shall be the total funds paid to the county assessors and tax collectors and shall be full compensation for their services, with any fees being paid to the county general fund.

The salaries * * * provided in this section shall be payable monthly on the first day of each calendar month by chancery clerk's warrant drawn on the general fund of the county.

The salary scale in this section shall not apply in any county in which the office of assessor has been separated from that of tax collector. In the event of such separation, the salary scale set forth in Section 25-3-5 shall control.

The salary of the county assessor-tax collector shall not be increased under this section until the board of supervisors has passed a resolution stating the amount of the increase and spread the same on the minutes of the board of supervisors. However, if the board of supervisors adopts a resolution increasing the salaries of the members of the board, at that time, the board of supervisors also shall pass a resolution increasing the salary provided for under this section.

SECTION 7. Section 25-3-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

25-3-5. In any county where the office of tax collector has been separated from the office of tax assessor, the annual salary of the assessor or tax collector shall be based upon the assessed valuation of his respective county for the preceding taxable year in the following categories and for the following amounts:

(a) For counties with a total assessed valuation of Two Hundred Fifty Million Dollars ($250,000,000.00) or more, a salary of Forty-seven Thousand Four Hundred Eighty Dollars ($47,480.00);

(b) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least Two Hundred Million Dollars ($200,000,000.00) but less than Two Hundred Fifty Million Dollars ($250,000,000.00), a salary of Forty-four Thousand Five Hundred Seventy-six Dollars ($44,576.00)

(c) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least One Hundred Fifty Million Dollars ($150,000,000.00) but less than Two Hundred Million Dollars ($200,000,000.00), a salary of Forty-one Thousand Six Hundred Seventy-two Dollars ($41,672.00);

(d) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least One Hundred Million Dollars ($100,000,000.00) but less than One Hundred Fifty Million Dollars ($150,000,000.00), a salary of Thirty-eight Thousand Seven Hundred Sixty-eight Dollars ($38,768.00);

(e) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least Seventy-five Million Dollars ($75,000,000.00) but less than One Hundred Million Dollars ($100,000,000.00), a salary of Thirty-five Thousand Eight Hundred Sixty-four Dollars ($35,864.00);

(f) For counties with a total assessed valuation of less than Seventy-five Million Dollars ($75,000,000.00), a salary of Thirty-two Thousand Nine Hundred Sixty Dollars ($32,960.00).

The annual salary established for the tax assessor or tax collector shall not be reduced as a result of a reduction in total assessed valuation. The salaries may be increased as a result of an increase in total assessed valuation.

In addition to all other compensation paid to assessors or tax collectors, in counties having two (2) judicial districts, the board of supervisors shall allow the assessor or tax collector to be paid an additional Three Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($3,500.00) per year. In addition to all other compensation paid to assessors or tax collectors, in counties maintaining two (2) full-time offices, the board of supervisors may allow the assessor or tax collector to be paid an additional Three Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($3,500.00) per year.

In addition to all other compensation paid to tax assessors and tax collectors, the board of supervisors of a county shall allow for such tax assessor and/or tax collector to be paid additional compensation when there is a contract between the county and one or more municipalities providing that the tax assessor shall assess taxes and/or tax collector shall collect taxes for the municipality or municipalities; and such tax assessor and/or tax collector shall be authorized to receive such additional compensation from the county and/or the municipality or municipalities in any amount allowed by the county and the municipality or municipalities for performing those services.

When any tax assessor holds a valid certificate of educational recognition from the International Association of Assessing Officers or is a licensed appraiser under Sections 73-34-1 et seq., he shall receive an additional One Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($1,500.00) annually beginning the next fiscal year after completion. When any tax assessor is a licensed state certified Residential Appraiser (RA) or licensed state certified Timberland Appraiser (TA) under Sections 73-34-1 et seq., or when any tax assessor holds a valid designation from the International Association of Assessing Officers as a Cadastral Mapping Specialist (CMS) or Personal Property Specialist (PPS) or Residential Evaluation Specialist (RES), he shall receive an additional Six Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($6,500.00) annually beginning the next fiscal year after completion. When any tax assessor holds the valid designation of Certified Assessment Evaluator (CAE) from the International Association of Assessing Officers or is a state certified General Real Estate Appraiser (GA) under Sections 73-34-1 et seq., he shall receive an additional Eight Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($8,500.00) annually beginning the next fiscal year after completion.

The salaries * * * set out in this section shall be the total funds paid to the county assessors or tax collectors and shall be full compensation for their services, with any fees being paid to the county general fund.

The salaries * * * provided in this section shall be payable monthly on the first day of each calendar month by chancery clerk's warrant drawn on the general fund of the county.

The salary of the county assessor or tax collector shall not be increased under this section until the board of supervisors has passed a resolution stating the amount of the increase and spread the same on the minutes of the board of supervisors. However, if the board of supervisors adopts a resolution increasing the salaries of the members of the board, at that time, the board of supervisors also shall pass a resolution increasing the salary provided for under this section.

SECTION 8. Section 25-3-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

25-3-13. The salaries of the members of the boards of supervisors of the various counties are * * * fixed as full compensation for their services.

The annual salary of each member of the board of supervisors shall be based upon the total assessed valuation of his respective county for the preceding taxable year in the following categories and for the following amounts:

(a) For counties having a total assessed valuation of * * * less than Thirty-five Million Dollars ($35,000,000.00), a salary of Twenty-four Thousand Five Hundred Twenty-eight Dollars ($24,528.00);

(b) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least Thirty-five Million Dollars ($35,000,000.00), but less than One Hundred Twenty-five Million Dollars ($125,000,000.00), a salary of Twenty-eight Thousand Two Hundred Thirty-seven Dollars ($28,237.00);

(c) For counties having a total assessed valuation of One Hundred Twenty-five Million Dollars ($125,000,000.00) or more, a salary of Thirty-five Thousand Seven Hundred Nineteen Dollars ($35,719.00).

The salary of the members of the board of supervisors shall not be increased under this section until the board of supervisors shall have passed a resolution stating the amount of the increase and spread the same on its minutes.

SECTION 9. Section 25-3-25, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

25-3-25. (1) Except as otherwise provided in subsections (2) and (3), the salaries of sheriffs of the various counties are * * * fixed as full compensation for their services.

The annual salary for each sheriff shall be based upon the total population of his county according to the latest federal decennial census in the following categories and for the following amounts; however, no sheriff shall be paid less than the salary authorized under this section to be paid the sheriff based upon the population of the county according to the 1980 federal decennial census:

(a) For counties with a total population of more than two hundred thousand (200,000), a salary not to exceed that of the county district attorney or less than Fifty-eight Thousand Five Hundred Twenty Dollars ($58,520.00);

(b) For counties with a total population of more than one hundred thousand (100,000) and not more than two hundred thousand (200,000), a salary of Fifty-seven Thousand Two hundred Dollars ($57,200.00);

(c) For counties with a total population of more than forty-five thousand (45,000) and not more than one hundred thousand (100,000), a salary of Fifty-five Thousand Eight Hundred Eighty Dollars ($55,880.00);

(d) For counties with a total population of more than thirty-four thousand (34,000) and not more than forty-five thousand (45,000), a salary of Fifty-four Thousand Five Hundred Sixty Dollars ($54,560.00);

(e) For counties with a total population of more than twenty-five thousand (25,000) and not more than thirty-four thousand (34,000), a salary of Fifty-one Thousand Nine Hundred Twenty Dollars ($51,920.00);

(f) For counties with a total population of more than fifteen thousand (15,000) and not more than twenty-five thousand (25,000), a salary of Forty-nine Thousand Two Hundred Eighty Dollars ($49,280.00);

(g) For counties with a total population of more than nine thousand five hundred (9,500) and not more than fifteen thousand (15,000), a salary of Forty-six Thousand Six Hundred Forty Dollars ($46,640.00);

(h) For counties with a total population of more than seven thousand five hundred (7,500) and not more than nine thousand five hundred (9,500), a salary of Forty-four Thousand Dollars ($44,000.00);

(i) For counties with a total population of not more than seven thousand five hundred (7,500), a salary of Forty-one Thousand Three Hundred Sixty Dollars ($41,360.00).

(2) In addition to the salary provided for in subsection (1) of this section, the Board of Supervisors of Leflore County * * *, in its discretion, may pay an annual supplement to the sheriff of the county in an amount not to exceed Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00). The Legislature finds and declares that the annual supplement authorized by this subsection is justified in such county for the following reasons:

(a) The Mississippi Department of Corrections operates and maintains a restitution center within the county;

(b) The Mississippi Department of Corrections operates and maintains a community work center within the county;

(c) There is a resident circuit court judge in the county whose office is located at the Leflore County Courthouse;

(d) There is a resident chancery court judge in the county whose office is located at the Leflore County Courthouse;

(e) The Magistrate for the Fourth Circuit Court District is located in the county and maintains his office at the Leflore County Courthouse;

(f) The Region VI Mental Health-Mental Retardation Center, which serves a multicounty area, calls upon the sheriff to provide security for out-of-town mental patients, as well as patients from within the county;

(g) The increased activity of the Child Support Division of the Department of Human Services in enforcing in the courts parental obligations has imposed additional duties on the sheriff; and

(h) The dispatchers of the enhanced E-911 system in place in Leflore County has been placed under the direction and control of the sheriff.

(3) In addition to the salary provided for in subsection (1) of this section, the Board of Supervisors of Rankin County * * *, in its discretion, may pay an annual supplement to the sheriff of the county in an amount not to exceed Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00). The Legislature finds and declares that the annual supplement authorized by this subsection is justified in such county for the following reasons:

(a) The Mississippi Department of Corrections operates and maintains the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility within the county;

(b) The State Hospital is operated and maintained within the county at Whitfield;

(c) Hudspeth Regional Center, a facility maintained for the care and treatment of the mentally retarded, is located within the county;

(d) The Mississippi Law Enforcement Officers Training Academy is operated and maintained within the county;

(e) The State Fire Academy is operated and maintained within the county;

(f) The Pearl River Valley Water Supply District, ordinarily known as the "Reservoir District," is located within the county;

(g) The Jackson International Airport is located within the county;

(h) The patrolling of the state properties located within the county has imposed additional duties on the sheriff; and

(i) The sheriff, in addition to providing security to the nearly one hundred thousand (100,000) residents of the county, has the duty to investigate, solve and assist in the prosecution of any misdemeanor or felony committed upon any state property located in Rankin County.

(4) The salaries * * * provided in this section shall be payable monthly on the first day of each calendar month by chancery clerk's warrant drawn on the general fund of the county.

(5) The salary of the county sheriff shall not be increased under this section until the board of supervisors has passed a resolution stating the amount of the increase and spread the same on the minutes of the board of supervisors. However, if the board of supervisors adopts a resolution increasing the salaries of the members of the board, at that time, the board of supervisors also shall pass a resolution increasing the salary provided for under this section.

SECTION 10. Section 25-3-36, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

25-3-36. (1) From and after October 1, 1997, every justice court judge shall receive as full compensation for his or her services and in lieu of any and all other fees, costs or compensation * * * authorized before January 1, 1984, for such justice court judge, an annual salary based upon the population of his or her county according to the 1990 federal decennial census; however, no justice court judge shall be paid less than that amount which would have been paid to such judges prior to the promulgation of the 1990 federal decennial census. The amount of the salary shall be determined as follows:

(a) In counties with a population of more than seventy-five thousand (75,000), a salary of Forty-four Thousand Two Hundred Eighty-six Dollars ($44,286.00);

(b) In counties with a population of more than twenty-one thousand (21,000) but not more than seventy-five thousand (75,000), a salary of Thirty-three Thousand Three Hundred Ninety-six Dollars ($33,396.00);

(c) In counties with a population of twenty-one thousand (21,000) or less, a salary of Twenty-two Thousand One Hundred Seventy-six Dollars ($22,176.00);

In addition to the amounts hereinabove provided, the board of supervisors of any county having two (2) judicial districts * * * which has a population of more than fifteen thousand (15,000) but less than eighteen thousand (18,000) may * * * pay each justice court judge an * * * amount not to exceed the sum of Two Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00) per year if the justice court judge maintains regular office hours and is personally present in the office he maintains for at least thirty (30) hours per week.

(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1) of this section, in the event that the number of justice court judges authorized pursuant to Section 9-11-2(1) is exceeded pursuant to the provisions of Section 9-11-2(4), the aggregate of the salaries paid to the justice court judges of such a county shall not exceed the amount sufficient to pay the number of justice court judges authorized pursuant to Section 9-11-2(1) and such amount shall be equally divided among those justice court judges continuing to hold office under the provisions of Section 9-11-2(4).

(3) From and after January 1, 1984, all fees, costs, fines and penalties charged and collected in the justice court shall be paid to the clerk of the justice court for deposit, along with monies from cash bonds and other monies which have been forfeited in criminal cases, into the general fund of the county as provided in Section 9-11-19; and the clerk of the board of supervisors shall be authorized and empowered, upon approval by the board of supervisors, to make disbursements and withdrawals from the general fund of the county in order to pay any reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in complying with this section, including payment of the salaries of justice court judges as provided by subsection (1) of this section. The provisions of this subsection shall not, except as to cash bonds and other monies which have been forfeited in criminal cases, apply to monies required to be deposited in the justice court clerk clearing account as provided in Section 9-11-18.

(4) The salaries provided for in subsection (1) of this section shall be payable monthly by warrant drawn by the clerk of the board of supervisors on the general fund of the county.

(5)  * * * The salary of a justice court judge shall not be reduced during his term of office as a result of a population change following a federal decennial census.

(6) Any justice court judge who is unable to attend and hold court by reason of being under suspension by the Commission on Judicial Performance or the Mississippi Supreme Court shall not receive a salary while under such suspension.

(7) The salary of the justice court judges shall not be increased under this section until the board of supervisors has passed a resolution stating the amount of the increase and spread the same on the minutes of the board of supervisors. However, if the board of supervisors adopts a resolution increasing the salaries of the members of the board, at that time, the board of supervisors also shall pass a resolution increasing the salary provided for under this section.

SECTION 11. Section 41-61-59, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

41-61-59. (1) A person's death which affects the public interest as specified in subsection (2) of this section shall be promptly reported to the medical examiner by the physician in attendance, any hospital employee, any law enforcement officer having knowledge of the death, the embalmer or other funeral home employee, any emergency medical technician, any relative or any other person present. The appropriate medical examiner shall notify the municipal or state law enforcement agency or sheriff and take charge of the body.

(2) A death affecting the public interest includes, but is not limited to, any of the following:

(a) Violent death, including homicidal, suicidal or accidental death.

(b) Death caused by thermal, chemical, electrical or radiation injury.

(c) Death caused by criminal abortion, including self-induced abortion, or abortion related to or by sexual abuse.

(d) Death related to disease thought to be virulent or contagious which may constitute a public hazard.

(e) Death that has occurred unexpectedly or from an unexplained cause.

(f) Death of a person confined in a prison, jail or correctional institution.

(g) Death of a person where a physician was not in attendance within thirty-six (36) hours preceding death, or in prediagnosed terminal or bedfast cases, within thirty (30) days preceding death.

(h) Death of a person where the body is not claimed by a relative or a friend.

(i) Death of a person where the identity of the deceased is unknown.

(j) Death of a child under the age of two (2) years where death results from an unknown cause or where the circumstances surrounding the death indicate that sudden infant death syndrome may be the cause of death.

(k) Where a body is brought into this state for disposal and there is reason to believe either that the death was not investigated properly or that there is not an adequate certificate of death.

(l) Where a person is presented to a hospital emergency room unconscious and/or unresponsive, with cardiopulmonary resuscitative measures being performed, and dies within twenty-four (24) hours of admission without regaining consciousness or responsiveness, unless a physician was in attendance within thirty-six (36) hours preceding presentation to the hospital, or in cases in which the decedent had a prediagnosed terminal or bedfast condition, unless a physician was in attendance within thirty (30) days preceding presentation to the hospital.

(3) The State Medical Examiner is hereby empowered to investigate deaths, under the authority hereinafter conferred, in any and all political subdivisions of the state. The county medical examiners and county medical examiner investigators, while appointed for a specific county, may serve other counties on a regular basis with written authorization by the State Medical Examiner, or may serve other counties on an as-needed basis upon the request of the ranking officer of the investigating law enforcement agency. The county medical examiner or county medical examiner investigator of any county which has established a regional medical examiner district under subsection (4) of Section 41-61-77 may serve other counties which are parties to the agreement establishing the district, in accordance with the terms of the agreement, and may contract with counties which are not part of the district to provide medical examiner services for such counties. If a death affecting the public interest takes place in a county other than the one where injuries or other substantial causal factors leading to the death have occurred, jurisdiction for investigation of the death may be transferred, by mutual agreement of the respective medical examiners of the counties involved, to the county where such injuries or other substantial causal factors occurred, and the costs of autopsy or other studies necessary to the further investigation of the death shall be borne by the county assuming jurisdiction.

(4) The chief county medical examiner or chief county medical examiner investigator may receive from the county in which he serves, and in any county having one or more deputy medical examiners or deputy medical examiner investigators each deputy may receive from the county in which he serves, a salary, in the discretion of the board of supervisors, of not more than Six Hundred Five Dollars ($605.00) per month, in addition to the fees specified in Sections 41-61-69 and 41-61-75. For this salary the chief shall assure twenty-four-hour daily and readily available death investigators for the county, and shall maintain copies of all medical examiner death investigations for the county for at least the previous five (5) years. He shall coordinate his office and duties and cooperate with the State Medical Examiner, and the State Medical Examiner shall cooperate with him. The salary of the chief county medical examiner, chief county medical examiner investigator, deputy medical examiner or deputy medical examiner investigator shall not be increased under this section until the board of supervisors has passed a resolution stating the amount of the increase and spread the same on the minutes of the board of supervisors. However, if the board of supervisors adopts a resolution increasing the salaries of the members of the board, at that time, the board of supervisors also shall pass a resolution increasing the salary provided for under this section.

(5) A body composed of the State Medical Examiner, whether appointed on a permanent or interim basis, the Director of the State Board of Health or his designee, the Attorney General or his designee, the President of the Mississippi Coroners' Association (or successor organization) or his designee, and a certified pathologist appointed by the Mississippi State Medical Association shall adopt, promulgate, amend and repeal rules and regulations as may be deemed necessary by them from time to time for the proper enforcement, interpretation and administration of Sections 41-61-51 through 41-61-79, in accordance with the provisions of the Mississippi Administrative Procedures Law, being Section 25-43-1 et seq.

SECTION 12. Section 41-61-60, Mississippi Code of 1972, which requires the payment of an additional amount to the county medical examiner/chief medical examiner investigator, is repealed.

SECTION 13. The Attorney General of the State of Mississippi is hereby directed to submit Sections 1 and 3 through 12 of this act, immediately upon approval by the Governor, or upon approval by the Legislature subsequent to a veto, to the Attorney General of the United States or to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in accordance with the provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended.

SECTION 14. Section 1 of this act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 1997, if it is effectuated on or before that date under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended; if it is effectuated under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended, after July 1, 1997, Section 1 of this act shall take effect and be in force from and after the date it is effectuated under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended. Section 2 of this act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 1997. Sections 3 through 5 of this act shall take effect and be in force from and after the date they are effectuated under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended. Sections 6 through 12 of this act shall take effect and be in force from and after October 1, 1997, if they are effectuated on or before that date under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended; if they are effectuated under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended, after October 1, 1997, such sections of this act shall take effect and be in force from and after the date they are respectively effectuated under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended.